Bottle closure



April 28, 1964 K. HENGSTENBERG 3,130,849

BOTTLE CLOSURE Filed May 10, 1962 Fig. 2 Fig. 3

gab-a WM azam United States Patent 3,139,849 BOTTLE CLOSURE Kurt Hengstenherg, Esslingen (Neckar), Germany, assignor to Rich. Hengstenberg, Esslingen (N eckar), Germany, a corporation of Germany Filed May 10, 1%2, Ser. No. 193,799 1 Claim. (Ci. 215-79) The present invention relates to a resealable bottle closure, preferably of plastic which is provided with a mouthpiece and is especially adapted for sealing vinegar bottles.

It is the general object of the invention to provide a closure for bottles containing perishable liquids, for example, vinegar, which after the bottle is filled seals the same hermetically and may also be used for easily resealing the bottle hermetically after it has once been opened and whenever parts of its contents have been poured out. Such tight rescaling is especially required for vinegar bottles since, if vinegar is exposed for a longer time to air oxygen, the so-called mother of vinegar is formed which quickly impairs the appearance of the vinegar so that it looks unappetizing.

Another object of the invention is to provide a bottle closure of the above-mentioned type with a spoutlike mouthpiece through which the vinegar may be easily poured out of the bottle and which therefore permits a vinegar bottle of a conventional shape to be used directly in a household without requiring a special pouring device to be fitted upon the bottle or the contents of the bottle to be refilled into a special container.

There has already been a closure for vinegar bottles according to a prior design which is provided with a spoutlike pouring tube which is surrounded above the bottle by a plate-shaped projection upon the edge of which a cup-shaped measuring cap may be fitted which tightly seals the bottle and is removable therefrom. In place of such a measuring cap, a bottle closure of this type has also been provided with a cap which is tightly secured to the nozzle-shaped opening and closes the same airtight, and which is connected to the closure member, for example, by means of a flexible bracket of plastic which permits the cap to be taken ofi without danger that it might be lost.

These prior bottle closures have one serious disadvantage insofar as they do not insure that the original contents of the bottle have not been tampered with before the bottle is first opened by the consumer. Furthermore they have the disadvantage that the cap or measuring cap must be firmly secured by the manufacturer of the bottle contents to the actual bottle closure or to the bottle neck in order to prevent the bottle from being unintentionally opened during shipment. It was therefore necessary to provide an additional gelatine cap or the like to secure the closure.

According to the present invention, the above-mentioned objects are attained and the disadvantages of the previous closures referred to above are overcome by providing a bottle closure in which the mouthpiece opening is hermetically sealed by a Web, and in which the mouthpiece itself or this web or both have a section of a reduced wall thickness, for example, in the form of a peripheral groove or recess along which the web may be severed from the end of the mouthpiece. This section of a reduced thickness may be formed simply by making the covering web of slightly smaller outer dimensions than the outer surface of the upper end of the mouthpiece so that a small peripheral recess or shoulder is formed between the web and the mouthpiece and only a thin connecting portion remains between them which may be easily cut through.

The new bottle closure is designed so as to be fitted upon the bottle after it has been filled at the place of 3,130,849 Patented Apr. 28, 1964 manufacture of its contents, for example, at the vinegar factory. Since the covering web seals the opening of the mouthpiece hermetically, the bottle closure also insures that the contents of the bottle will be tightly sealed from the outer air. The mouthpiece is then additionally protected by a cap which is fitted over the mouthpiece. When the bottle is first to be opened, this cap is Withdrawn from the mouthpiece and it is thereafter merely necessary to sever the covering web from the mouthpiece, for example, by cutting With a knife along the peripheral recess and through the thin connecting portion. The cap may thereafter be fitted over the mouthpiece to reseal its opening.

The mouthpiece is preferably provided with a transverse Web which serves as a reinforcement and separates the mouthpiece into two channels, one for pouring the contents from the bottle and the other for admitting air into the bottle while pouring. The covering web on the mouthpiece is preferably provided with a transverse groove in its outer surface and in alignment with the transverse web in the mouthpiece and it rests with its lower side on the upper edge of this transverse web. This transverse groove facilitates the operation of severing the covering Web from the mouthpiece.

The new bottle closure may be produced at a very low cost and it insures a secure and airtight closure of the bottle both before and after the bottle is first opened, and as long as the covering web is not pierced or cut off, it also insures that the original contents of the bottle have not been tampered with.

The objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more clearly apparent from the following detailed description thereof which is to be read with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 shows a perspective view of the bottle closure according to the invention, in which the mouthpiece from which the outer cap is removed is closed by the covering web;

FIGURE 2 shows an axial section of the bottle closure according to FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 shows a plan view of the bottle closure according to FIGURE 1; while FIGURE 4 shows a perspective view of the bottle closure according to FIGURE 1, but with the cap fitted thereon.

Referring to the drawings, the new bottle closure consists of a hood 1 which is adapted to be fitted tightly over the mouth of a bottle 2, and of a mouthpiece 3 which is integral with hood 1 and preferably has an elongated cross section. This mouthpiece 3 is divided at the inside by a partition 4 into two parts forming channels 5 and 6. The outlet opening of mouthpiece 3 is closed by a web 7 of slightly smaller outer dimensions than those of the mouthpiece so that along the upper edge of the mouthpiece a recess 8 is formed whereby only a thin connecting portion remains between web 7 and the upper edge of mouthpiece 3 which may be easily severed, for example, by a knife. After the original seal of the bottle is thus broken, mouthpiece 3 may again be hermetically closed by a cap 9 which may be easily removed from the mouthpiece by means of a projection 10 which serves as a handle. Cap 9 is designed so as to permit it to be fitted tightly on mouthpiece 3 even though the latter is still sealed, that is, before web 7 is removed. At the point where web 7 rests on the upper edge of partition 4, the outside of web 7 is provided with a transverse groove 11 which permits Web 7 to be still more easily severed from the mouthpiece.

The new bottle closure may be made of any suitable kind of plastic which will not be affected by the bottle contents, for example, vinegar, and which is sufficiently flexible so that hood 1 may be easily drawn over the mouth of the bottle, and which will also permit web 7 to be easily cut off from the mouthpiece. Of course, instead of providing the recess 8 along the upper edge of mouthpiece 3 so as to permit web 7 to be easily cut ofi along this recess, it is also possible to provide a similar narrow peripheral portion of a reduced cross section on the mouthpiece 3 itself, for example, in the form of a peripheral groove in the upper end portion of mouthpiece 3 underneath web 7.

Although my invention has been illustrated and described with reference to the preferred embodiment thereof, I wish to have it understood that it is in no way limited to the details of such embodiment but is capable of numerous modifications within the scope of the appended claim.

Having thus fully disclosed my invention, what I claim A bottle closure of a resilient material comprising a hood adapted to be secured to the mouth of a bottle, a mouthpiece integral with and projecting from said hood and having an elongated shape with an'end opening therein extending substantially across the entire width of said bottle mouth and having substantially parallel side walls, said mouthpiece having a transverse partition so as to form two channels for pouring out the contents of the mouthpiece, said web having a transverse groove in its upper surface over and in alignment with said partition, and a removable caplike member adapted to fit tightly over said mouthpiece for protecting said mouthpiece before said web is severed therefrom and then adapted to rest on and be supported by said web, and also for hermetically sealing the opening of said mouthpiece after said web is removed.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,471,868 Swartz Oct. 23, 1923 2,536,160 Duggan Jan. 2, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS 548,681 Belgium June 30, 1956 

